Body composition parameters as correlates of coronary artery disease

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Obesity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CAD). This study was aimed to assess the risk for CAD determined by certain new and conventional body composition parameters such as visceral fat area (VFA), body mass index (BMI), waist to hip ratio (WHR), etc. METHODS: We did an age and sex matched case-control study of acute myocardial infarction with 100 participants in a tertiary care hospital (50 cases and 50 controls) representing the serving army personnel. The relation between VFA, per cent body fat (PBF), BMI, waist and hip circumferences, and WHR to CAD was assessed. RESULTS: The study showed that there was a significantly increased risk for CAD associated with VFA (OR: 5.67; 95% CI: 1.96, 16.95), WHR (7.07; 2.19, 24.27), waist circumference (WC) (2.63; 1.05, 6.66) and BMI (2.53; 1.03, 6.26). INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, increased VFA, BMI, WHR and WC showed an association with CAD. VFA is a good index for assessing not only visceral fat accumulation but also cardiovascular risk factors.